What is it?Screen printing is a printing method that consists of pushes ink through a mesh that is partly covered by a stencil. The method was first invented by Chinese during the Song Dynasty (960-1279) where it was employed to transfer patterns onto textiles. Screen printing also became popular in Japan where it was used to “create imagery on fabric”. It later made its way to the west in 18t century but it wasnt until the invention of the squeegee in the early 1900s, that the method saw any real uptake. As this new invention made it easier to pull the ink through the screen therefore drastically increasing the rate in which screens could be printed. During the 1960s screen printing it was picked up by artists most noticeably Andy Warhol who used the method to mass produce his popart works. How to Screen PrintMaking the ScreenTo make a screen print you first either make or buy a wooden frame with mesh. You then place masking tape around the edges of the mesh before spreading emulsion onto the mesh. Next you print out your design onto a clear acrylic. Once the emulsion is dry you place the acrylic on top of the emulsion and expose the entire thing for about 13-14 minutes. You then wash off the emulsion leaving you with a ready to use screen. Images found online from instructables.com uploaded by SMcCrocklin PrintingTo print, you simply take your screen and place it place down on a surface. Placing the material you wish to print onto under the screen, you then dollop some ink onto the screen, enough for it will cover your design. Then use a squeegee to pull the ink through the mesh a couple times to ensure a sharp print. Lift up the screen remove the material and you have a print. To clean your screen you simple wash under a tap and dry it off. Images found online from instructables.com uploaded by SMcCrocklin Health and SafetyWhen making screen prints, there are a few health and safety concerns that must be observed. They are:
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My PrintsIntroductionWith this in mind, I decided I wanted to try my hand at screen printing as it gave me an opportunity to create a textile design somewhat inspired by the Rococo pattern design. Design• Design Choices This is the design I made for my screen print. When creating this design I decided to with block black lines as this type of simplistic design would print the best. Meanwhile the design itself is based on Rococo and Lolita textile patterns. I took inspiration from Lolita as it is contemporary style that is based on Rococo, amongst other things. And I figured, it would be an interesting way to intwine my themes of Rococo design with contemporary fashion. I could also later reuse this design in my digital art to create/design outfits. My design and sketches were created in a combination of Procreate and Adobe Photoshop. I also made a coloured version of my design, to imagine how it might look should I want to carry on exploring this method and create a multicoloured print. • Problem Solving When creating my design I ran into a few dilemmas, the first and main one being trying to make sure everything was perfectly symmetrical. Which despite how easy it may seem to fix, it was surprisingly difficult even when I duplicated and flipped layers. In the end I was able to get everything perfect by flipping layers, it was just a pain to do. PrintsThese are a few prints I made using screen printing. When making them I tried to experiment much as I could printing on different materials. Initially a started with pink ink but later switched to black as I felt it just looked sharper. Though I could’ve experimented mixing different colours of ink I decided not to as I felt it would take away from the design too much.
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